whoissilmoy

I think the opening Douban score is going to be very high on his drama, just a hunch based on ratings in the early comments, should exceed an 8, maybe 8.5, could go to 9 but there are many 1's among the mostly 5's. How can anyone give a drama a 1?

Finally, a comment about that stiff and fake looking hair of his. No wonder I thought he looked charming with a headband or cap on, it hid the hairline. It's a good thing he has a nice face.

Ruthlessness in pursuit of power and willingness to kill has never been limited to any one gender.

While Europe endured the medieval period (5th–15th centuries), often called the 'Dark Ages,' China thrived through a series of golden ages. The Tang (618–907) and Song (960–1279) dynasties saw remarkable advancements in governance, technology, trade, and culture.

Elite women in historical China were educated, influential, and held power—like Wu Zetian, the only female emperor of the Tang and Wu Zhou dynasties, who influenced governance for 50 years, and Empress Dowager Cixi of the Qing dynasty, who ruled as regent for 47 years.

Chinese literature reflects the significance of romance, with love and relationships as central themes in classical works.

"倾国倾城" (qīng guó qīng chéng), which translates to "Overturning a city and unsettling a nation". This phrase describes a woman whose beauty is so extraordinary that (even her smile) it can captivate rulers and influence the fate of an entire country.

Okay

Ancient China was highly advanced in medicine, with sophisticated herbal remedies, acupuncture, and early surgical practices, as well as in metallurgy, engineering, astronomy, and other fields.

Then it will be standard fare—just as expected—unless it takes a more complex turn, making celebration less certain if the plot holds more surprises. Perhaps the writer will challenge the audience with emotional conflicts, which can be risky, I suppose.

it's great for actors to play characters who are complex and have transformations

love the costumes

Xiao Zhan looks good with headband or cap like in the romantic boat scene he had a cap on. I like the outfit he had on too, it's simple and elegant, something about it really caught my attention. I don't normally like that dreary gray tone, but it looks good for some reason, must be the style and fabric. He looked handsome and elegant. I like his posture in that scene; the body language spoke volumes. I like the atmosphere of the scene.

Xiao Zhan: "Since this is my first historical drama using live-recorded dialogue, I placed special emphasis on the lines. I even hired a dialogue coach. I remember, every day after returning to the hotel, I would focus on studying and working on my lines. The ancient way of distributing emphasis, and how the people of that time used to convey the meaning behind what they said in a subtle manner, without laying out their emotions, that the listener could also understand — all of that required a lot of preparation."
"I haven't done suspense or detective roles yet. If I get a chance, I'd like to try it. I actually quite like this genre."
" I feel that Zang Hai is different from the roles I've portrayed in the past."
"Zang Hai's personality is definitely not one-dimensional. He's a very complex character. He has a firm resolve for revenge, but at the same time, he also embodies the softest, most compassionate aspects of human nature."

Now I know why the actor who plays the duke was so recognizable to me even though he only had a guest role in ALP. He's a pretty good actor even though he plays a lot of supporting roles.

Those guards were not very smart but that's why they're lowly guards. They didn't even try to break the lock.

Someone updated Vanda Margraf profile picture here. It looks nice.

I haven't seen any I would consider "spicy"

because of this director, he's been nominated Magnolia best director many times

Which Chinese drama has spicy scenes? I don't know of any.

You're not used to it yet because you haven't seen worst.

he has to be crafty to compensate for his lack of martial skills

Oh, so this is the same director who did all these good dramas: 1. Empresses in the Palace (Douban 9.4), 2. Red Sorghum (8.3), 3. Legend of Mi Yue (6.2 but lots of awards), and 4. Always on the Move (7.4). I picked these out. Why? I click on it and can't stop watching. Now I know why. This director either nominated or won awards for all these dramas, not just best director, but lots of other awards too for the dramas.
Magnolia 2012 Won Best Director for 1
Golden Eagle 2016 Won Best Director for 2 & 3
Magnolia 2015 Nominated Best Director for 2
Magnolia 2016 Nominated Best Director for 3
Magnolia 2024 Nominated Best Director for 4